Despite the international ban on ivory poaching, the Marxist ZANU Government of Zimbabwe has been selling ivory to Red China in exchange for jet fighters, tanks and other military hardware.

DOCUMENTING A DISASTER

The Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force has documented the widespread destruction of wildlife in Zimbabwe in a devastating report.

Some 90% of the animals have been destroyed since 2000 when President Robert Mugabe began seizing and dividing productive white commercial farms into smaller plots to divide amongst his supporters. The ZCTF documents massive deforestation and widespread slaughter of the wildlife. According to the report Zimbabwe had 620 private game sanctuaries before the land invasions began. Now only 14 remain. Of the 14 conservancies before 2000, only 1 remains.

The ZCTF gathered information and studied records of 62 game ranches. 59 reported losses including the killing of 75 rare black rhinoceroses, 39 leopards, 9500 impalas, 5000 kudus, and 2000 wildebeest. Until now there had only been anecdotal evidence of the widespread slaughter of wildlife in Zimbabwe. Now the ZCTC report has shown that up to 90% of the wildlife in Zimbabwe has been destroyed since Mugabe expelled the white farmers, confiscating their farms and sub-dividing the land amongst his supporters. “The farms that made Zimbabwe Africa’s bread-basket collapsed, and some of the country’s most basic food-stuffs became impossible to find. As a result of the subsistence farmers moving in – often dubbed “war-veterans” by the regime – they began to hunt the wildlife that had thrived and, in many cases been protected on the ranches.”

“How long will the land lie parched and the grass in every field be withered? Because those who live in it are wicked, the animals and the birds have perished.” Jeremiah 12:4

WILDLIFE SLAUGHTERED IN GAME SANCTUARIES

Compounding the disastrous economics policies of Mugabe’s ZANU Government has been the neglect of national parks such as the world-famous Wankie (now called Hwange) National Park. Severe neglect has led to watering pans running dry because parks officials claimed there was “no longer enough fuel to power the pumps.”

Massive poaching, often organised by the very conservation officials who are meant to be protecting the wildlife, along with an invasion of poachers from neighbouring countries, has made “bush meat” prevalent in the market places.

Last year the ZANU government slaughtered 100 elephants so that their meat could be served as part of their “Independence Day Celebrations.”

“The animals are being killed indiscriminately,” says Johnny Rodrigues, the author of the ZCTF Report. “There’s a lot of commercial poaching and there are people on the ground snaring these animals. This is where a lot of the destruction is coming from.”

Despite the worldwide moratorium on ivory sales, ZCTC has reported on tons of ivory being exported to Asia, “It is an organised business and government officials and police are involved.”

“A good man takes care of his animals, but wicked men are cruel to theirs.” Proverbs 12:10

MARXIST MISMANAGEMENT

Before the handover of Rhodesia to Mugabe’s ZANU, in 1980, the country had some of the greatest wildlife reserves and most successful conservation policies in Africa. It will take generations to repair the devastation caused by the Marxist economic policies, corruption and mismanagement by Mugabe’s regime. In the mid-1970’s, it took US Dollar 3 to buy 1 Rhodesian Dollar. Today Zimbabwe has the highest inflation rate in the world (over 5000%). Despite knocking three zero’s off it’s currency, the new Z$200 000 dollar bill is not even worth US Dollar 1. Zimbabwe now also has the lowest life expectancy – below 32 years.

HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES AND HYPOCRISY

The independent Human Rights Forum has issued a Report documenting 5307 human rights violations (including detention without trial, torture and murder) by the Zimbabwe Army and Police – just in the first six months of this year. The state-sponsored terrorism and national suicide of Zimbabwe stands as an indictment on the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and it’s so called “Peer review.”

“Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves. Protect the rights of all who are helpless.” Proverbs 31:8